Sweet Confusion
by katiefoxe
Summary: It's Valentines' Day and there are a few crossed wires...
1. Chapter 1

_**Hello! It's been ages since I've posted or written anything and I'm not really all that happy with this fic. It's one I started last year, hence none of the newer characters are included, and I came across it again the other day. I decided to tidy it up a bit and finish it. It should be only 2 chapters I think (famous last words!) and I hope to have the other chapter up tomorrow if my internet connection holds out. It's just a bit of silliness really and probably horribly OOC but I thought I'd post it anyway. Review and opinions welcome :)**_

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><p>'You want me to what?' Serena stared at Chantelle in confusion as the young nurse held out a Valentine's card to her.<p>

'Write this card for me.' Chantelle said brightly. Observing Serena's continued confusion Chantelle realised she would need to explain herself again. 'My friend Louise broke up with her boyfriend three weeks ago and she's really low and she thinks she'll never find love again because they were together for a whole year and she was sure he was "the one" and they would get married and have lots of babies – Louise hoped for two boys and two girls…'

Serena held up a hand. 'Chantelle – get to the point please.' She said wearily.

'Oh yea, sorry. Anyway, to cheer her up I want to send her a Valentine card tomorrow. So…' Chantelle beamed and held the card out again.

'Perhaps I'm being a little dim but… I fail to see what this has to do with me.'

'Well she'll recognise my handwriting so I thought maybe you could write it for me.' Chantelle replied as if it were obvious.

Serena glanced at the red and pink card with a teddy bear holding a heart that said 'Be My Valentine' on it. It was nauseatingly soppy and exactly the kind of card Serena would have imagined Chantelle loving.

'Fine.' She sighed. 'What do you want me to write?' This could count as her good deed for the day she figured.

'Um… I hadn't really thought of that.' Chantelle's brow furrowed in concentration. 'What would you write?'

'I wouldn't.' Serena replied glibly.

'You've never written a Valentine's card?' Chantelle asked incredulously.

'Not since I was a silly teen.'

Chantelle observed Serena's dour expression and decided not to push the matter in case Serena changed her mind about writing it. 'Well, um, just write – thinking of you or – Always thinking of you! Or maybe 'I think you're really really special and…'

'I say go with 'thinking of you',' Serena cut her off, 'You don't want to go overboard and give her the wrong idea – seeing as there isn't actually someone thinking about her.'

'I'm thinking about her.' Chantelle said.

'Yes, but you're not thinking of her romantically are you? Unless there's another part to this story I'm missing?' Serena raised an eyebrow.

'No! No. Just friends.' Chantelle said hurriedly. 'Ok. Thinking of you then.'

'Abdo pain from AAU.' Mary-Clare appeared at the nurses' station and handed a file to Chantelle, clocking Serena writing the card her eyes widened.

'Bed three is ready.' Chantelle said.

'Ok.' Mary-Clare shrugged. Her job was done getting the patient to Keller, she didn't have to get them all the way to the next bed. Chantelle sighed and went over to the patient. Mary-Clare tried to subtly turn her head to read what Serena was writing but was interrupted by the arrival of the CEO.

'Ms Campbell, I believe you wanted a second opinion.' Hanssen said in way of announcing his presence.

Serena startled slightly and shoved the card beneath some files. She didn't want Hanssen seeing her writing a Valentine's card and getting the wrong idea. 'Uh yes, bed 8.' She grabbed the file and made her way towards the patient.

Hanssen didn't immediately follow, instead looking pointedly at Mary-Clare. 'Have you been relocated from AAU Nurse Carter?'

'Uh no, Mr Hanssen, I was just bringing up a patient.' She explained. Hanssen continued his expressionless stare. 'I best get back there now.' He nodded and she made her way towards the lift.

Hanssen glanced around quickly. He'd noticed Serena shoving something beneath the files and was intrigued to find out if it was in fact what he thought it had looked like. He discreetly lifted the files and spotted the tacky Valentine's card. He was surprised to say the least; he would never have imagined Serena Campbell being the type to buy into this ridiculous Valentine's Day nonsense.

As Hanssen made his way towards bed 8 Mary-Clare returned quietly to the nurses' station. She had seen Serena hiding the card and observed Hanssen searching for it. As she read the card she suddenly got a wicked look on her face.

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><p>'Good morning Ms Campbell and happy Valentine's Day!' Harry Tressler greeted Serena smoothly as she entered the hospital the following morning.<p>

'Good morning Dr Tressler.' Serena gave him a polite smile and made her way towards Pulse's to grab a coffee seeing as she still had half an hour before her shift was due to start. She was unimpressed by the heart shaped balloons and red bunting used to decorate the coffee stand. She realised Tressler had followed and glanced sideways at him.

'So, any special plans for Valentine's?' he asked as they queued for coffee.

'No.'

'Oh. I'm surprised. I expect you've had no shortage of admirers. Bet it took you ages to get through all your cards this morning.' He continued. Serena completely ignored him and stepped forward to order her coffee. Tressler looked around awkwardly to make sure no had noticed the Deputy Director of Surgery blanking him. He saw Mary-Clare heading for the lift. She winked at him and he smirked.

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><p>'Happy Valentines' Day Ms Campbell!'<p>

Serena paused mid stride and blinked as Chantelle all but leaped in front of her, holding out a box full of Love Heart sweets, as she arrived on Keller.

'Good morning Nurse Lane.' She replied, attempting without success to sidestep the nurse.

'Would you like a sweet?' Chantelle thrust the box at her again.

'Uh no thank you. It's a bit early.' She said pointedly looking at the clock.

'Oh I don't think it can ever be too early for sweets. But then not everyone has as much of a sweet tooth as I do. Why don't you take some for later?' she rattled the box.

Serena sighed and took a few, mumbling thanks and making her way to the office, surprised that Ric wasn't already there. She dropped her briefcase on the floor and left the sweets on the desk and went to hang up her coat. She was about to sit down when Chantelle appeared again.

'Oh I forgot to say! Mr Griffin won't be in today.'

'What? Why not?'

'A SPA day? Something like that.' Chantelle shrugged.

'Who's covering?' Serena demanded. Ric bloody Griffin and his SPA days!

'Um no one.' Chantelle answered timidly. 'But Mr Hanssen has said if at any point you can't manage to let him know and he'll pop down.'

'Pop down?' Serena asked in flat tone.

'Well, he didn't say pop down – those are my words but well the way he said it… I can't really remember his words exactly.' Chantelle crinkled her nose in concentration trying to remember Hanssen's exact wording. 'Sorry. The gist of it was that he'd pop down though.' She smiled hoping Serena wasn't about to get angry.

'Fine.' Serena sighed and sat down as Chantelle quickly exited. She picked up the sweets, turning them over to see the phrases written on them. There were three and Serena rolled her eyes after reading;

_Be Happy_

_Surrender_

_Lucky Day_

'Lucky day indeed.' Serena grumbled quietly to herself.

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><p>Hanssen gathered his post from the holder outside his door and made his way inside, taking a seat at his desk he straightened his laptop which was slightly out of line with the edge of the desk before he turned his attention to the mail. After picking up the first brown envelope his attention was caught by a square, red envelope beneath it. He paused and picked it up. It had <em>Henrik <em>scrawled somewhat elaborately across it. Putting down the other letter he turned the red envelope over in his hands and opened it. The card he pulled from it looked worryingly familiar. It had a picture of a teddy bear holding a heart with 'Be My Valentine' written on the front. It couldn't be, he told himself, but as he opened it up his heartbeat quickened slightly.

There was a soppy poem printed in the centre of the card which he didn't bother to read. Instead his eyes immediately scanned the familiar handwriting. This was the card he had seen Serena Campbell hiding the day before. The handwriting was Serena Campbell's.

_Thinking of you xx_

He swallowed as he tried to comprehend the meaning and implications of Ms Campbell's actions in sending him this.

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><p>'Nurse Carter – to what do we owe the pleasure? I notice you don't appear to have any patients with you?' Serena asked glancing up from the nurses' station briefly.<p>

'That's because I don't.' Mary-Clare replied loftily. 'I'm here to spread some Valentine's cheer.' She produced a basket of foil wrapped heart shaped chocolates.

Serena sighed as she looked at them but before she could speak Chantelle appeared.

'Aww are they for us?' she asked and Mary-Clare nodded. 'How lovely! Isn't that lovely Ms Campbell?'

'Yes. Lovely.' Serena replied smiling at Chantelle's enthusiasm. As Chantelle put some of the Love Hearts into a container for Mary-Clare to bring to AAU – a love sweet swap – Serena picked out a chocolate. She thought of the diet she'd been on for the last two weeks… her internal debate was interrupted however by the sound of a throat being cleared and she twirled around to find Hanssen standing behind her.

'Mr Hanssen.' She greeted him with a polite smile.

'Ms Campbell.' He seemed almost hesitant.

'Something we can do for you?' she asked, watching him curiously as he tugged slightly on the collar of his shirt.

'I um…'

'Mr Hanssen – chocolate?' Mary-Clare cut him off with a smirk.

Hanssen glanced distractedly at her, seemingly confused for a moment before noticing the chocolates and replying stiffly that he wouldn't before returning his attention to Serena.

'Oh come on Mr Hanssen, it's just a bit of chocolate.' Mary-Clare persisted.

'Shouldn't you be on AAU Nurse Carter?' Hanssen snapped.

'Sorry.' Mary-Clare said, taking the container from Chantelle and grumbling under her breath 'just trying to be nice.' She turned on her heel and stomped off. Noticing Hanssen's apparent mood Chantelle made herself scarce too.

Observing Hanssen for a moment Serena wondered what was irking the Swede today. She really wasn't in the mood for a battle.

'Ms Ca-'

'Here, save me from myself.' Serena cut him off, hoping to delay whatever lecture she was about to receive. 'Take my heart!'

'Wh-what?' Hanssen's eyes widened momentarily before he noticed the heart shaped chocolate she was holding out to him.

'I'm on a diet.' She explained. 'You arrived just in time to stop me from giving into temptation.' He accepted the chocolate and looked at it intently. She noticed again that he seemed uncomfortable. Whatever he had to say it must be bad. She took a deep breath. 'Shall we go to my office?'

'Um' Hanssen turned the chocolate heart over in his hand before seemingly coming to a decision. 'No.' he said decisively.

Serena waited for him to continue.

'My office. Half an hour.' He said briskly, giving a small nod before turning and walking away.

Serena watched him go. Now she was worried.


	2. Chapter 2

**Sorry this is late and it's just a short chapter. Having laptop problems at the moment so not sure when I'll get the next chapter up. Thank you everyone who reviewed the first chapter, glad you liked it :)**

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><p>Hanssen silently berated himself for losing his courage in tackling Ms Campbell about the card. But when she'd suggested going to her office he had realised he would feel much more confident dealing with the matter in his own office. As he stepped into the lift he noticed a young couple inside and glanced at the lift buttons. The button for the ground floor was lit up and he sighed quietly, that meant the lift would most likely travel to the ground floor before going to the 5th floor which was his destination. He should have taken the stairs but the lift doors had closed and it was too late now.<p>

The couple suddenly hugged eachother, the woman seemingly upset. Hanssen began to feel awkward.

'Don't worry. Whatever happens, we've got each other and we'll deal with everything together.' The man said softly, kissing his partner on the forehead.

Hanssen stared stonily ahead wishing for the lift to go faster.

'I know. I'm not sure I could cope without you.' The woman replied.

'Well you'll never have to!' the man smiled. 'Together forever you and me.'

Hanssen almost snorted. Everyone ended up alone in the end, that's simply how life was. Relying too heavily on others, no matter how well intentioned, would only ever lead to heartache.

'Now, lets push this all aside for one day.' The man continued. 'For the rest of today it's just a regular Valentines' day.'

'Oh? So you've forgotten to get me a gift then have you?' the woman teased.

'What? No –' the man protested.

'Well you said it was a "regular Valentines day"…'

'One time I fogot! One time! Anyway, I gave you the greatest gift of all years ago – my heart!' the man said and the woman giggled as the lift reached the ground floor and they exited, still holding onto each other.

Hanssen pressed the button for the 5th floor again. He reached into his pocket and took out the heartshaped chocolate Ms Campbell had given him. He looked at it and wondered once again what on earth had prompted the woman to send him that card. She must have known she was crossing a line. What did she hope to achieve? Perhaps it was a joke? But then wouldn't she have said something by now if that was the case? She hadn't batted an eyelid when he went to Keller and she didn't seem the type to play pranks.

He thought back over Ms Campbell's recent behaviour trying to pinpoint if there had been anything out of the ordinary but he couldn't recall anything. 'Thinking of you' she had written in the card. What could she mean by that? She couldn't possibly want… there was no way Ms Campbell might be attempting to… Suddenly he felt warm and wished the lift would hurry up.

If she did indeed for whatever reason suddenly want to pursue some kind of relationship with him, what was he going to do? For a moment he allowed himself to wonder what a relationship with Ms Campbell might be like… In practical terms they were probably well suited and if he were looking for a relationship it would make sense for him to persue her. She was intelligent, witty, ambitious and understood the constraints of his job. She was attractive. And tall which would mean he wouldn't need to crouch too much when… kissing her. He swallowed. Did he want to kiss her? He supposed he wouldn't be averse to it.

The lift reached its destination and he hurriedly exited it, taking a deep breath and made his way along the hallway to his office. He glanced at his watch. He had just over twenty minutes to decide how he was going to deal with this situation.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you all so much for the reviews and messages, I really appreciate it. As I rewrite this I'm realising why I didn't post it in the first place and am having to change large chunks of it to get it to make any sense (I hope it's not too ridiculous). Hope you enjoy this chapter :)**

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><p>Forty minutes later Hanssen once again stepped onto Keller. His gaze immediately falling upon Serena Campbell who was standing at the nurses' station with the phone to her ear and reaching for a box of sweets left on the desk.<p>

'Ms Campbell.'

Serena startled visibly and turned to face him. 'Mr Hanssen! I was just calling your office…' she hung up the phone.

'I am not in my office.' He replied glibly.

'Yes,' Serena said slowly, 'I can see that.'

'I should be in my office. As should you - ' Hanssen continued, faltering slightly as Serena turned fully to face him, placing one had on her hip and twirling something small in her other hand between her fingers. 'uh be in my office.'

'Yes, I know.' Serena gave an apologetic half smile. 'I'm afraid I was caught up with a patient.'

'Well, no harm. We can – '

'And I have to bring her into surgery now. That's why I was calling. Can we reschedule?' Serena explained.

'I suppose we must.' Hanssen answered.

'Say an hour?' Serena checked her watch and Hanssen nodded his consent. Serena smiled and glanced beyond him to where Chantelle and a porter were wheeling the patient to theatre. 'Right.' She smiled and as she began to move away looked at the sweet she had been twirling in her hands. 'Here, you have this!' she said handing it to him, her eyes twinkling.

Hanssen accepted it and watched her walk away before looking at the sweet. It was a Love Heart.

_Stud Muffin_

Hanssen's eyebrows shot up and he turned around to look at Serena again but she had already left the ward.

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><p>An hour later Hanssen sat at his desk with the card, the chocolate heart and the Love Heart sweet laid out before him. He glanced at his watch. She should be here soon. He had told his secretary that he was not, under any circumstances to be interrupted during his meeting with his Deputy Director of Surgery, save for some catastrophic turn of events. He hadn't done any work all day, the sooner this matter was sorted the better.<p>

He took a deep breath. He still wasn't entirely sure how he was going to handle this. He had decided he would take his lead from Ms Campbell. It could turn out to be a rather inappropriate joke, in which case he would admonish her and seek her word that such a thing would never happen again. If it was not a joke… So far his entire plan of action hinged on it being a joke.

He was aware of his pulse rate increasing and glanced at his watch again. He opened his desk drawer and carefully placed the card and other items into it and then smoothly closed it again. Glancing quickly down at himself he adjusted his tie slightly and straightened himself up even further in his chair, placing an elbow on each armrest. He waited for the knock.

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><p>Serena reluctantly made her way towards Hanssen's office with two coffees. She had thought she was getting better at reading the enigmatic Swede but his behaviour today had left her perplexed. She had initially thought she was in for a telling off but his demeanour when he had returned to Keller had been far too amiable given that she was late for a meeting with him, even with a genuine excuse he normally would have made some sarky comment or complained that she hadn't let him know sooner. The fact that he came to Keller to look for her instead of just calling to demand her whereabouts was strange in itself.<p>

She stood outside the door and took a deep breath, bracing herself. She had bought him a coffee in the hopes of softening him up, even though she knew it was a vain hope if indeed he was going to lecture her about something. Nothing would 'soften up' Henrik Hanssen. She balanced one coffee on top of the other and knocked.

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><p>Hanssen took another deep, slow breath before calling for Ms Campbell to enter. He immediately noticed the two cups of coffee she came bearing. She smiled and waved a cup at him as she approached the desk, leaning forward to place a cup in front of him.<p>

'You don't mind do you? I was dying for a cup and – well, thought you might like one too.' She explained as she sat down. She noticed a strange look flitting across his face, something between surprise and something else she didn't catch. He probably immediately suspects me of trying to butter him up, she thought. 'Also, I'll feel less awkward sipping this if you have one too!' she added.

He gave a small nod, his lips twitching and said a quiet 'thank you', before tugging at the collar of his shirt and clearing his throat. He reached out and moved the coffee cup slightly more to the right and then cleared his throat again. Serena waited patiently, slightly bemused by his behaviour.

'Ms Campbell, I am sure you know why I have asked to speak to you.' he began.

'Do I?' she raised an eyebrow, her steady gaze holding his for a moment before his eyes flickered around the room. If Serena didn't know the man better she'd have said he was nervous. But if the reason he had asked her here was the reason she suspected then she couldn't imagine why on earth he would be.

Staring at the desk for a moment, he began again. 'Let's not make this difficult Ms Campbell. Your behaviour –' he paused and looked up at her again. 'you have crossed a line.' He said firmly. He pursed his lips and lifted his chin slightly, hoping he sounded as confident and as steadfast as he wished to sound.

Serena sighed and looked towards the window briefly. Hanssen watched her carefully. 'It's not really the end of the world now is it?' she asked, sounding slightly bored.

That was not the kind of response he had been expecting.

'So you are admitting to it?' he said, as his brain raced through all the possible responses and scenarios he had been practising all morning trying to select an appropriate match.

'Well, I wasn't exactly deceptive about it and it is a bit difficult to hide.'

Hanssen was confused by her attitude. 'Ms Campbell do you realise how inappropriate it is? What on earth made you do it?'

Serena shrugged, he really was overreacting. 'I fancied a change.'

'What do you mean?'

Serena sighed again. 'Oh come on, don't tell me you never get bored of the same old routine, staring at the same four walls in here every day…' she trailed off as she glanced around the obsessively tidy office and realised Hanssen wasn't someone who tired of routine. 'You know the saying – a change is as good as rest? Well, I thought it would be good to shake things up a bit, try a few new positions…'

'Positions?' Hanssen asked. This didn't match any of the scenarios he had practiced in his head. He felt that he was rapidly becoming out of his depth and now almost wished he hadn't so strenuously told his PA not to interrupt them.

Serena really couldn't understand why he looked so appalled. 'Yes, the desk and stuff. Haven't you ever considered it? You have loads of room in here.' She noticed he was starting to look a little flushed. There was no point in dragging this out any further, she decided, she may as well shout mae culpa and be done with it. 'Alright, I know the way I went around it was unorthodox and there are protocols et cetera but – it didn't cost the hospital anything extra.' She paused taking in his expression again but couldn't judge his reaction. 'I'll have an incident report filed by the end of the day –'

'An incident report?' he interrupted. He didn't really want this going any further. 'Are you sure that's necessary? Perhaps, given there was no harm done and you do realise error you made… Perhaps, we should simply keep it between ourselves. To avoid any unnecessary gossip.'

'Gossip?' Mr Play-It-By-The-Book was suggesting she didn't file an incident report? She was shocked. 'I am glad that you agree there was no real harm done but, I do think I should file a report. Just to be on the safe side in case there are any repercussions further down the line.'

'I can assure you Ms Campbell, there won't be. I think it's best if we forget the incident ever happened.'

Serena stared at him. 'Mr Hanssen… are you alright?'

'Fine.' He said as he reached once again to tug at his collar. He glanced down at the table to avoid eye contact with her and noticed the coffee cup. He picked it up and took a sip.

'And what if the young man returns in a month's time exaggerating what happened and everyone starts asking why I didn't file a report?'

'What young man?' he demanded, putting the cup down and looking sharply at her.

'The porter.' She answered. She was really starting to worry about him now. 'Mr Hanssen-'

'Porter? What has a porter got to do with this?'

They both stared silently at each other for a moment as it slowly dawned on them that they were talking at cross purposes.

'Ms Campbell, I think we need to go back to the beginning.' Hanssen suggested eventually.

'Agreed.' Serena nodded slowly. 'Why did you want to meet with me?'

'Uh, perhaps we should clear up this porter story first.'

Serena sighed. 'I thought we were talking about me redecorating the Consultant's Office on Keller.'

'Keller isn't due any maintenance of that kind.' He said crinkling his nose and he tried to remember what work was taking place on the wards at the moment.

'I know.' Serena said coyly. 'But it's been driving me insane and… At first all I intended was to move the furniture around but when we did that it was obvious the walls needed painting. So…' she took a deep breath. 'There were a couple of porters hanging around not doing very much and they said there were paint cans in the basement that were left over from the last ward to be painted so I figured 'waste not want not'!

'Ms Campbell you do realise that maintenance work is not the remit of porter? We have contractors for such work. If the unions – '

'Yes, yes, I know! But there were perfectly fine about it.' She rolled her eyes.

'Why is it you have to write an incident report if it was all so "fine" then?' he asked dryly.

'It's Ric's fault!' she sighed. 'He said they splashed paint on his briefcase and started ranting at them whilst one of the young men was up the ladder. The poor young man got distracted by Ric's bellowing and lost his balance momentarily but the other man was quick enough to steady him and the ladder so there was no harm done, he just got a bit of a fright.'

'A bit of a fright. Doing a job he shouldn't have been doing.' Hanssen looked at her sternly.

'Yes, I'm a bad girl, I know.' She said sarcastically. 'Can we move on to why it is you really wanted me here now?'

Hanssen suddenly looked uncomfortable again.

'Oh it can't be that bad can it?' she asked.

'It's about the card.' He said, straightening his posture and looking her in the eye.

'What card?' she asked disinterestedly and taking a sip from her coffee which was starting to go cold.

'The…' he paused and took a breath. 'The Valentines card you sent me.'

Serena coughed, her coffee catching in her throat at his words. 'What?' she croaked.

'There is little point in denying it Ms Campbell, I recognise your handwriting.' He decided not to mention that he had seen the card the day before in case he had to admit to his curiosity in searching beneath the files to see what she had hidden.

'Why on earth would I send you a Valentines card?' she scoffed. 'You're obviously mistake.'

She seemed quite certain. He almost believed her but the evidence was irrefutable. He sighed and pulled open the desk drawer, carefully removing the card he watched Serena's expression and he left it on the desk. She clearly recognised the card.

'But that-' Serena stopped and continued to stare suspiciously at the card as he handed it to her and she opened it up to see her handwriting inside.

'Are you denying that's your handwriting Ms Campbell?' he asked somewhat smugly.

'No but… This wasn't for you.' she shook her head as she tried to figure out how this had happened. 'I wrote this for Chantelle.'

Hanssen raised his eyebrows and cleared his throat. 'For Nurse Lane?' he asked incredulously.

'Yes.' Serena looked up and caught his expression. 'Not like _that_!' she said hurriedly. 'She didn't want her friend who she was sending it to recognise her handwriting.' Hanssen's expression clearly said he didn't believe her. 'Why would I send you a card?' she asked flatly.

'That's what I wish to find out.' He replied calmly although his heart was pounding.

'I didn't!' she was becoming exasperated.

'Well then how do you explain how this card managed to find it's way into my collection of post, with MY name scrawled on the envelope?'

Serena didn't have an answer.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Hello, I know it's been aaages... The delay has been a combination of things. Firstly I reached the end of the preiosuly written parts of this story, so it wasn't a matter of rewriting and tidying up it became actually just writing the rest of it and my "writers block" is still a problem. Also, Word has been acting up on my laptop so I had to handwrite this first and it's take forever to type up this chapter - which is why it's a little short.**_

_**Massive thanks to everyone who reviewed and sent messages, so glad people have enjoyed this. It's going to be longer than I thought (aren't they always) but hopefully won't be as long until the next chapter. Please enjoy :)**_

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><p>'Honestly, it wasn't me Ms Campbell." Chantelle stood in Hanssen's office looking wideeyed and earnestly at Serena. She glanced nervously towards Hanssen, sitting behind his desk with an unreadable expression. 'Really.'<p>

Serena looked thoughtful for a moment trying to decide if she believed the nurse.

'Although…' Chantelle began. 'If you think about it… Maybe it's not a bad thing that this mix-up happened.'

Serena raised an eyebrow slowly.

'I mean, well, I think you two would make a lovely couple.' Chantelle continued. She saw the expressions on their faces and revised her opinion. 'Well, maybe not _lovely _but… well suited.'

'Has this been some kind of misguided attempt at matchmaking?' Serena demanded.

'No!' Chantelle shook her head vehemently. 'I really honestly had nothing to do with the card. Except for you know, buying it and getting you to write it Ms Campbell but that wasn't for Mr Hanssen. Honest. I've never even thought about you two like that before but, well, now that you've mentioned it…'

'We haven't mentioned it!' Serena barked.

'No, sorry, but now that I've thought about it… It does kind of make sense don't you think?' Chantelle looked from one to the other. Serena was staring at her as though she thought she was mad. Hanssen looked more thoughtful. 'Out of all the men in this hospital Ms Campbell I think either Mr Hanssen or Mr Griffin would suit you best.' She turned to Hanssen. 'And you Mr Hanssen – I can't imagine you with ANYONE! Except now Ms Campbell. When you stop and think about it, you just sort of fit.' She smiled.

Hanssen blinked several times before suddenly discovering something very interesting on the surface of his desk. Serena rolled her eyes at Chantelle.

'Do you swear you had nothing to do with sending Mr Hanssen the card?'

'I swear. Cross my heart.' Chantelle answered.

Serena sighed. 'Alright. Go back to the ward – and _don't _breathe a word of this to anyone!' she warned.

Chantelle hurriedly left the office and Serena turned to watch Hanssen thoughtfully observing Chantelle as she left. He caught her eye and rapidly lowered his gaze to the desk again.

'Honestly, the things she comes out with!' Serena laughed. The very idea of her and Hanssen… it was laughable.

'So if it was not Nurse Lane behind the card…' Hanssen trailed off, looking up at her again.

'We're back to square one.'

'Indeed. One card. With your handwriting.'

'For heavens sake, how many more times? I did not send you the card.' Serena said in exasperation. She caught the sceptical look on his face again. 'Why would I send you a card and then go to this much trouble to deny it? Hmm?'

Hanssen tilted his head in acceptance of her argument. Serena observed him for a moment and wondered briefly if there might be a part of Hanssen that was actually disappointed that the card wasn't from her.

'Nurse Carter.' Hanssen spoke suddenly.

'What about her?'

'She was there when you wrote the card and hid it.' He explained.

'You saw me hiding it?' Serena asked, she thought she had been discreet.

Hanssen simply nodded, he wasn't going to add that he looked for it. 'As did Nurse Carter probably.'

Serena's eyes narrowed. Mary-Claire was just the type to play a prank like this. 'I think we might have our culprit.'

Hanssen reached for his phone. 'I'll send for her.'

'No, wait.' Serena said and he paused. 'Why don't we go to her? On the extreme off chance that it isn't Mary-Claire and we drag her up here and explain what's happened there is _no way _she will keep it to herself when she goes back to the ward. We need to be sure.'

'How do you propose we do that?' Hanssen asked.

'I'm not sure. I'll think of something when we get there.' She replied. Hanssen gave her another sceptical look. 'Lets just see how she reacts to us and then…'

'And then?'

'Then we'll know.' Serena stood up.

'How will we know?' Hanssen asked, rising from his chair and making his way around his desk.

'We'll know whether we need to ask her.' Serena said, walking to the door.

'Sounds like an unreliable plan of action.' Hanssen said in a flat tone, reaching the door.

Serena sighed and leaned back against the door for a moment and turning to look up at Hanssen. He paused uncertainly unsure of why she had stopped her exit.

'If you're even a fraction as frustrating in your personal life as you are at work then Chantelle is most definitely wrong about us being well suited!' Serena told him.

'At least you wouldn't be bored if you were with me.' He retorted and then blinked. He wasn't sure what he even meant by that.

Serena was surprised by his response. She gave him a lazy smile. 'Oh really?' she asked in a low tone.

Hanssen swallowed and Serena thought she saw the slightest pink tinge developing on his cheeks. She grinned and opened the door.


	5. Chapter 5

**My laptop has gone to laptop heaven but I managed to get hold of one for a few hours and threw this chapter together, I hope it's ok. I can't make any promises as to when another update for this or any other fic might be forthcoming. It's been that long no one's probably reading them anymore anyway! On the offchance anyone does - hope you enjoy :)**

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><p>Hanssen stole a sly glance at Serena as the lift descended towards AAU. He should not have doubted for a second that the card was the result of a prank. Serena was horrified by the mere idea of sending him a valentine. He suppressed a sigh and returned his gaze to the doors of the lift. Catching sight of his maudlin reflection in the doors he subconsciously straightened his posture and mentally chastised himself. 'You should be relieved you fool,' he told himself., 'half an hour ago you were petrified that things might become complicated. At least now you know your professional relationship with Ms Campbell can carry on as normal'. He tried to sneak another glance at her but found that his gaze met with Serena's steady observation. She quirked an eyebrow at him and he swiftly returned his eyes to the door.<p>

Serena's eyes narrowed as she observed Hanssen quickly pretending that he hadn't been looking at her. He really was quite the enigma, she thought. Hanssen cleared his throat and she noticed his fingers twitching by his side. Serena had not taken the time to properly study the Swede since she first arrived at Holby, surmising at the time, perhaps a little prematurely, that he was a bizarre law unto himself and unlikely to be swayed by personal persuasions. Since then she had stuck to cold hard facts when dealing with the CEO and saved her manipulations for those around them both whom she required to aid her in her arguments. She was starting to think she should re-evaluate those previous assumptions.

Hanssen's awkwardness in approaching the topic of the valentine card and the easy way in which he blushed earlier suggested flirting wasn't something the Swede was accustomed too. Given her own natural tendencies towards flirtation it was unusual that she had not made any concerted effort to do so with him. But given his standoffish nature and the fact he was her boss she had decided that even jokingly, it probably wouldn't be appreciated and might in fact be to the detriment of her career at Holby. However she felt a lot more secure in her position at the hospital these days and since his return from Sweden Hanssen appeared to have mellowed ever so slightly, even allowing himself to show a sense of humour more often. Given how much the valentine card appeared to have thrown him today, Serena surmised that Hanssen wasn't in a relationship and probably hadn't been in one for quite some time. She wondered what the last person Hanssen dated was like. She found it difficult to imagine what he might be like as boyfriend. 'He'd be hard work!', she told herself. She glanced sideways at him again with a smirk.

The lift doors opened and AAU was revealed before them. Hanssen allowed Serena to exit first and she let her arm graze his as she walked past. She didn't notice any reaction from the Swede and continued towards the nurses station.

Hanssen paused momentarily after Serena brushed against him before following her purposely towards the nurses station. He glanced around noting immediately that there was no sight of Nurse Carter and then remembered then remembered they didn't actually have a plan.

'Ms Campbell.' He said quietly. Serena didn't appear to hear him and was looking around the ward. He stepped closer and spoke over her shoulder. 'Ms Campbell…'

Serena jumped, startled at his proximity and twirled around. 'Have you been struck by inspiration yet?' he noticed her look of confusion. 'You said when we arrived on AAU you would just suddenly know how to handle this.' He smirked.

'I said once we'd observed Mary-Claire's reaction to us!' Serena corrected him. 'But clearly she's not here.' Serena spotted Gemma Wilde. 'Do you know where Nurse Carter is?'

'Uh…' Gemma glanced somewhat nervously between the two senior consultants. 'I'm not sure…'

Serena rolled her eyes. 'Well if she does turn up, tell her Mr Hanssen and I were looking for her will you please?'

Gemma nodded and scurried away.

'Now what do you suggest we do?' Hanssen asked.

Serena paused before answering with a glint in her eyes. 'I know what I'd like to do…' she tilted her head sideways with an enigmatic look. 'But I suppose what we should do… is go to the office and wait for Mary-Claire to grace the ward with her presence.' She smiled. She twirled on her heel and headed for the office.

Hanssen watched her go in mild confusion. Just as he was thinking it might be best if he went back to his office and let Serena handle this, he noticed Dr Wilde darting for the door to AAU guessed what she was probably up to.

Hanssen summoned Serena from the office and they walked down the corridor to follow Dr Wilde as she undoubtedly went to warn Mary-Claire that the CEO and his deputy were looking for her.

'Any idea yet as to how we're going to deal with this?' he asked as they walked.

'It's a cheeky nurse Mr Hanssen, not a nuclear reactor! Just… go with it!' Serena retorted, tipping his arm with her elbow. She caught him glancing down at his arm as they rounded a corner and she suddenly clocked Gemma, Mary-Claire and Harry huddled together talking animatedly. Serena came to a sudden halt and began to back up again, bumping into Hanssen in the process.

'Ms C-'

'Shush! Quick! Before they see us!' Serena pushed Hanssen back around the corner and then peeked around to see if the others were still talking. Hanssen self-consciously loomed over Serena from behind, glancing around swiftly to ensure no one was watching before leaning to also peek around the corner. They could hear the others talking.

'You're dead.' Harry said gleefully.

'Thanks a lot Harry!' Mary-Claire replied grumpily. 'Did they look mad?' she asked Gemma.

'They looked… like themselves.' Gemma shrugged.

'You're dead!' Harry repeated.

'Shut-up Harry!' Mary-Claire growled. 'How could they know it was me? If anything Chantelle is the most likely suspect.'

'Sweet, lovely, innocent Chantelle?' Gemma asked skeptically.

Mary-Claire seemed to be considering her situation for a moment.

'Well there we have it!' Hanssen whispered. He straightened up and made to move forward but Serena shushed him again.

'What on earth possessed you anyway?' Gemma was asking Mary-Claire.

Mary-Claire shrugged. 'It was just a bit of crack. Thought it might liven them up. It's probably the first valentine card Hanssen's ever had!'

Serena glanced at Hanssen but his expression was unreadable.

'Yea, I'm sure they'll love that explanation.' Gemma said.

'You. Are. Dead.' Harry broke into another fit of laughter and Mary-Claire elbowed him.

'Maybe they've seen the funny side?' she asked hopefully.

'Sure. And maybe they came to AAU to thank you for playing this prank on them because it actually made them realize their love for one another!' Gemma said sarcastically.

'Well I bet Hanssen wouldn't say no to a bit of love from Serena!' Mary-Claire said huffily. 'I saw the way he looked at her today! The man's gagging for it!'

Hanssen froze, too afraid to glance down at Serena and see her reaction. He could feel his cheeks warming again.

'Eww!' Gemma winced.

'Hey, maybe they're already at it!' Harry suggested. 'Everyone said it was odd that he gave her that promotion to deputy after she effectively tried to shaft him last year. Maaaaaybe… he found a way she could make it up to him!' Harry wriggled his eyebrows.

'The bloody ch-' Serena straightened and was about to let rip but felt Hanssen's hands on her shoulders.

'Remain calm Ms Campbell.'

'Ca-' Serena's outrage was cut short as the others began to walk and she realized they were about to be discovered. Before she could react, she felt her arm being pulled and suddenly found herself pushed against the wall in a storage cupboard.

'What are you doing?' she hissed at Hanssen.

Hanssen stood open mouthed for a moment and simply shrugged. 'I… I thought it was best they didn't see us.' He answered. Though he wasn't quite sure why, except that suddenly the position they were in huddled against each other peering around a corner, given the conversation they had overheard, seemed quite precarious and potentially humiliating.

'Because it's oh so much better for us to be discovered in a storage cupboard!' Serena sneered.

Hanssen swallowed. This was why he preferred to plan ahead.


	6. Chapter 6

**I know! My goodness, how long has it been? I've become really rubbish when it comes to writing. But I hope I'm getting back on track and here's a quick update to get things rolling (if anyone is still reading!). Hope you like :)**

This was not how Hanssen had envisaged his day panning out. He glanced down at Ms Campbell who was currently pressed between him and the wall of the storage room. They were both wedged behind the door, listening for signs that Harry, Mary-Claire and Gemma had passed by.

'Now what?' Serena hissed.

Hanssen shrugged. 'We wait I suppose.' he whispered. He saw Serena roll her eyes and cock her head to one side listening for the others.

'I'm telling you,' Harry Tressler's voice carried into the storage room. 'men like Hanssen always like a dominatrix in the bedroom.'

'Eww Harry, don't!' Mary-Claire chided.

'I bet Harry's right.' Gemma added teasingly. 'Hanssen spends all day in charge, being all aloof and mysterious and dark lord-ish…"

"Exactly!' Harry chimed in. 'His type are always leather and whips when they get down and dirty! Plus he's Swedish!'

Amidst his embarrassment, Hanssen briefly wondered what Tressler was inferring with that remark.

'Oh. My. God.' Mary-Claire screeched. 'I'm officially traumatised by that mental image!'

As Harry and Gemma laughed, Serena and Hanssen stood awkwardly behind the door avoiding looking at one another. Hanssen's cheeks were flaming. But the others weren't done.

'I saw his face when he was looking at my Dr Honey photos, the man isn't averse to a little kink! And Serena's obviously been around, I bet she knows a few tricks!' Gemma continued.

'Hang on!' Mary-Claire cut in. 'Dr Honey?'

'How come you showed Hanssen kinky photos and not me?' Harry asked.

There was a moments pause before Gemma responded. 'I didn't show him, they were on a… It doesn't matter.'

'I think it does!' Harry said cheerfully.

'Look, I'm not the one Hanssen and Serena are going to kill!' Gemma said.

'Thanks for reminding me.' Mary-Claire said miserably.

Hanssen and Serena couldn't hear anything else and chanced a timid glance at each other.

'Are they gone?' Serena mouthed silently and was answered with a shrug.

Hanssen looked at the gap between the door and it's frame and wondered if he could get a big enough view of the corridor through it. He would have to lean forward though which meant… He glanced down at Serena and swallowed. Gesturing with his hand he indicated that he wanted to lean forward for a better view and Serena nodded, despite being apprehensive about having Hanssen any closer than he already was. This was a situation that had 'SCANDAL' written all over it!

Hanssen leaned in, noting the scent from Serena's hair appeared to be apple. He almost forgot why it was he was leaning forward when he felt Serena's hands on his torso and he glanced down. Serena seemed to be staring intently at his tie, her hands resting against him. He hoped she couldn't feel how fast his heart was pounding.

Trying to maintain some distance, Serena had placed her hands between her body and Hanssen's, belatedly realising that might be misconstrued, not as an a blocking attempt but as affection. She looked up and saw Hanssen staring at her with a peculiar expression on his face.

'Well?' she whispered. This seemed to jerk him from his revery and he refocused his attention on the gap between the door and the frame.

'All clear, I think.' he whispered. Serena sighed in relief and moved forward faster than Hanssen was moving away causing another moment of awkwardness as she bumped into him. Hanssen practically leapt away then, clearing his throat and tugging on his shirt collar. A nervous tick, Serena thought, deciding that could be a useful bit of information.

They got the lift back to Keller in silence, after they were both paged. Both taking a moment to be silently grateful they hadn't been paged whilst they'd been hiding behind the door! Getting out of the lift, Serena paused for a moment.

'About Mary-Claire…' she began.

'Yes.'

'We'll have to deal with her later…'

'Indeed.' Hansen nodded curtly and walked away.

Chantelle approached them holding out two folders.

'Two mysterious abdo pains; one with an added bump to the head!' Chantelle greeted them cheerfully. 'Which would you like?" she asked Hanssen as he reached her first.

Hanssen glanced around the ward first.

'Abdo pain plus bump to the head - bed 8. Abdo pain minus bump to the head - bed 6.' Chantelle said helpfully, guessing he was trying to spot who the patients were.

Serena followed Hanssen's gaze, doing a double take as she saw bed 8.

'Stage collapsed at a fashion show.' Chantelle explained as she saw where the two consultants were looking. 'Right in the middle of the lingerie part.'

Serena turned to see Hanssen's reaction to the four lingerie clad young women gathered around a fifth young woman lying on the bed. She thought she saw his jaw clench slightly but other than that his expression was bland.

'I'll take bed 6.' he said, taking the folder from Chantelle and briskly making his way towards the patient.

Serena and Chantelle exchanged surprised looks.

'How many male doctors in this hospital do you know who would pick…' Serena glanced at the middle-aged woman in bed 6, 'Ordinary and middle-aged over - five, buxom, young lingerie models?'

'Dr Malick wouldn't care.' Chantelle answered with a shrug before moving on.

Serena's eyes widened and she glanced towards Hanssen.


End file.
